NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc.

ADDITION: Arrow Blu-ray (October 2022): Arrow have transferred Gia Elliot's Take Back the Night to Blu-ray. It is on a dual-layered disc with a very high bitrate. It looks as pristine as you might expect a modern film transferred at 1080P. It is in the 1.85:1 aspect ratio and is spotless clean with some keen cinematography by the director herself (credited as 'Gia Vangieri') showing tight close-ups and excellent use of light. Some of the very dark scenes show what looks like noise - but it is barely perceptible. There are no strong issues with the HD presentation that supports the film very pleasingly with an occasional blurry hand-held vérité appearance still showing frequent depth of field and true colors. All good.  

NOTE: We have added 54 more large resolution Blu-ray captures (in lossless PNG format) for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE

On their Blu-ray, Arrow give the option of a robust DTS-HD Master 5.1 surround track (original) or a linear PCM stereo track (both 24-bit) in the original English language. Take Back the Night has aggressive sequences that are very impactful - especially with the music (I don't know who did the score, but it can dominate.) There is some notable separation in the surround and intense bass. It is all predictably clean with consistent dialogue in the lossless transfers. Arrow offer optional English (SDH) subtitles on their Region 'B'-locked Blu-ray.

The Arrow Blu-ray offers a new commentary by writer-director Gia Elliot and Alexandra Heller-Nicholas author of Rape Revenge Films. Gia describes how the film took 5 -years to make, taking out the linear structure of a traditional film and her admiration for Dolores Huerta, an American labor leader and civil rights activist, quoting her; "You have power in your body". She describes her organic process of the film's evolution. Alexandra asks some questions about her filmmaking technique and communication. The discussion goes quite deep ands it was a pleasure to listen. There are four separate visual essays as further supplements to the Blu-ray. I think that's a first. A Critical Study - Please Don’t Say the Word ‘Monster’ on National Television is by film critic Emma Westwood and runs over a dozen minutes. Trauma and Space is by film critic Cerise Howard exploring the idea of ‘safe spaces’, sanctuary and vulnerability in Take Back the Night. It runs 6-minutes. What is a Body?, is by film critic Justine Smith examining bodily autonomy and perception in the digital age running 5-minutes and #MonstersAreReal is by film critic BJ Colangelo looking at survivor unity, sexual violence, and social media for an additional 5-minutes. There is a theatrical trailer, image galleries of behind-the-scenes shots, stills and posters plus there is a Resources Page (click to access.) The package has a reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Nicole Rifkin and the first pressing includes an illustrated collector's booklet featuring a round table discussion of the film by Anna Bogutskaya, Alexandra Heller-Nicholas and Valeria Villegas Lindvall, plus a double-sided fold-out poster featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Nicole Rifkin.  

Gia Elliot's Take Back the Night is a remarkable and ambitious debut feature effort. There is so much to like paralleling an effective horror narrative. I thought Emma Fitzpatrick was excellent projecting in a very authentic manner (the camera follows her almost exclusively.) Take Back the Night resolutely deals with themes of victim-shaming, bravery, self-empowerment and the unbearable stresses of assault and abuse embracing dire importance without preaching overly loudly. I'd love to see what the director / writer / cinematographer does next. The Arrow Blu-ray looks and sounds perfect and has some highly desirable extras from a commentary, visual essays and booklet. I was very engaged in Take Back the Night and we absolutely recommend.

Gary Tooze